Divided carton



p 11, 4- H. A. HOOKER I 1,973,209

DIVIDED CARTON Filed Nov., 23, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l 3 \nvgnTor Hang A. Hooker Sept. 11,1934. H HOOKER 1,973,209

DIVIDED CARTON I Filed Nov. 23. 193 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 \[QUQHTOY J; w mg;

Patented Sept. 11, 1934 PATENT OFFICE DIVIDED CARTON Harry A. Hooker, Chicago, Ill.., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Blue Valley Creamery Company,

Chicago, 111.,

a corporation of Delaware Application November 23, 1931 Serial No. 576,688 3 Claims. (01. 229-21) This invention relates to containers, and more specifically to a new and improved carton for the dispensing or shipping of two or more products or articles which, from their nature, should be sep-.

5 arated in the container.

Heretofore, many containers have been proposed. Some of these have partitions which divide the interior thereof into one or more compartments, but objections to most of these are found in uneconomical construction, particularly because of the necessity of employing more than one piece of material in the formation thereof;

and in a resulting loss of strength and stability because of such manifold construction.

An object of this invention is to provide a container that will be economical in construction, positive in operation, and rigid and strong in its completed form.

A further object is to provide a container which is formed from one blank and yet whichhas at least one partition integral with the interior thereof and dividing same into separate compartments for the handling of products possessing qualities which necessitate or make desirable their being kept apart in dispensing or otherwise handling. i

A still further object is to provide a container the ends of which may be effectively sealed by mere manipulation and without the employment of additional elements such as paste or glue.

These and other objects made apparent throughcut this specification are accomplished by means of my invention in improvements in containers, and more particularly the foregoing features thereof, a full and complete understanding of which is made possible by reference to the drawings herein in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the blank from which the completed container is fabricated.

Fig. 2 is a View in perspective showing one end of the container partially open, and with one sec tion of the top thereof raised to an abnormal position, showing the partition in place within the container.

Fig. 3 is a view in perspective of the container showing in detail the special locking means employed at the end thereof.

Fig". 4 is a fragmentary perspective showing at the end locking means in their disengaged or un-' a locked position.

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective showing a second locking means that may be employed at an end of the container.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the'filled container in fully closed position, the

6 is now flexed inwardly and at right angles inner dotted lines representing articles of merchandise packed therein.

Like characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the various figures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the container is preferably fabricated from a single pieceof material such as card board, corrugated board, solid fibre board or other similar material. The blank 1 herein is of rectangular form and of such dimensions as to accommodate the C5 particular articles for which the completed box is intended to be used. The blank 1 comprises a bottom 2, side walls 3 and 4, a top 5, and a supplementary top and partition member 6.

At opposite ends of the bottom 2 and top 5 are formed tabs .7 and 8, and 9 and 10, respectively, which tabs are intended to be folded inwardly, and, in the case of members '7 and 9, engage each other in such a fashion as to form an improved positive end locking means, as is explained more fully in another part of this specification. At one end the side 4 is formed a tab 11, the end of which is folded along a given line to provide an engaging flap 12; while the opposite end of the side 3 is provided with similar means indicated as 13 and 14.

One or both ends of the supplementary top member 6 (depending upon whether one or two partitions is desired) is provided with an extension 16 which may have a flap end 17.. In order to avoid the existence of a split corner in the finished carton, the member 16 is preferably cut on the lines 18, 19 and 20 to form the tab 6a which, in the completed box, lies in the same plane as the member 6 and effectually closes the corner portion of the box. However, the slit 20, see Fig. 2, is slightly visible even 'when the carton is folded and thus serves as indicating means to show the exact position of the interior dividing partition.

The container is put into finished or completed form by folding the blank 1 along the dotted lines indicated in Fig. 1, which lines may be weakened or creased in the blank as part of the initial forming operation, said folding including the bending of the sides 3 and 4 at right angles to the bottom 2 and an inward bending of the members 6 and 6a in the same angular relation to the side 3. The member 16 of the element thereto, and the tab 1'7 on the end of said member bent at substantiallyright angles so that it lies in a, horizontal planewith the member 6.

Thus a partition is formed within the container, dividing the interior thereof into two and the entire arrangement cooperates to pro-' vide a practicable separation within the carton, which partition not only serves the foregoing functions of division, but in additon makes possible a stronger and more rigid box. This latter feature is important in preventing breakage or injury to articles packed within the container during handling or shipping. If desired, supplementary means such as glue may be employed to attach the tab 1'? to the bottom 2, but experience has shown that, for most purposes, the use of additional securing means is unnecessary.

If more than one partition is desired in the box, a second such element may be formed by providing the member 6 with a construction similar to that represented by 6a, 16 and 17, at both ends, and folding such to construct the division members in a manner previously indicated herein. This provides a carton with three inner compartments instead of the two illustrated, such modifications lying within the pur-- view of the instant invention, which is to be given as Wide a range of equivalents as its contribution to the art entitles it. I

The top 5 is now folded or bent across the supplementary top 6, lying in a parallel plane therewith, and the end tabs 8 and 10 turned across the opening in one end of the box and the end 13 brought across them, the tab 14 thereof being tuckedbetween said end tabs and the side 4 of the container.

Special attention is now directed to the form and construct'on of the end tabs 7 and 9. These members are formed with cut-out curved portions 21 and 22, terminating in slits 23 and 24. A similar construction may be employed as to the tabs 8 and 10 if desired, although a somewhat more conventional form of closure is shown in the drawings in connection with the container illustrated. The end tabs 7 and 9, which have been brought opposite each other by the folding operation, and occupy a position somewhat like that shown in Fig. 4, are now brought into locking engagement with each other by so manipulating the ends 21 and 22 thereof that they are made to interlock along the slits 23 and 24 as illustrated in Fig. 3. This provides a cheap and at the same time secure end closure for the box, as the natural tendency of the same is to pull outwardly, due to the original fiat character of the blank from which the container is fabricated, and such out- Ward pulling here merely serves to more securely engage the tabs. It is to be noted that the engagement and tensioning of the end tabs 7 and 9 causes the intermediate partition 16 to slight ly bow and exert opposite resistance to bending and such distortion greatly stiffens the box. The closure is completed by bringing the extension 11 across the members 7 and 9 and tucking the tab 12 between such members and the side 3 of the box.

The container as completed represents a commercially practicable, economical and easily assembled product of this kind. Its novel end locking means permits the securing of the ends in a positive manner without the employment of paste, glue, or other supplementary devices as in the prior art. In addition, in the form shown, access may be had to either compartment of the box without disturbing the intervening partition, which factor of convenience may be a considerable one if frequent entrance into the container is necessary. The box has been found very useful in dispensing, handling, shipping or otherwise transporting articles which from their nature should be separated from each other, and given protection from contaminating or distorting one another as by rubbing or other contact.

In the drawings, Fig.5 shows my carton packed with a piece of butter 25 and a bottle of salad dressing, 26, which two articles are often dispensed together from delicatessens and the like to be taken on picnics or to the home or elsewhere to be used in making sandwiches. My invention provides a compact, economical and efiicient container for this purpose, the special partition thereof protecting the butter from contamination or injury by the bottle, and at the same time lending to each the protection of a rigid and practical carton, the material of fabrication and hence the strength of which will depend upon the particular use for which it is constructed.

I claim:

1. A container formed from a substantially rectangular blank of sheet material, comprising a bottom, side walls, a top, and a supplementary top member integral with one of the sides, one end of said member being sl't inwardly from an edge thereof and then having the slit extending substantially parallel to the side walls at a predetermined distance inwardly therefrom, said last mentioned part of the slit extending from the end of the supplementary top member a distance substantially equal in length to the depth of the container measured from the bottom to the top, said port'on of the supplementary top member which is located between said slit and the edge of said supplementary top member being turned at right angles to the top of the container to form a partition dividing the interior thereof into two compartments of predetermined size, sa d other portion of the supplementary top member adjacent said slit forming a lateral tab on the side, said tab lying in the plane of the top member.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1 including also a flap 1? at the end of the partition member, said flap beng adapted to lie inside and against the bottom wall of said container.

3. A combination of elements as recited in claim 1 but also having means integral with said blank for preventing separation of the bottom and top at the end adjacent the said slit.

HARRY A. HOOKER. 

